Friends Like Us: The Ballad of Bambi and Nathan
by Serenity in Virginia
Summary: In the heart of winter, a boy is given the power to communicate with animals. With this power, he manages to befriend Bambi and his friends.
1. Chapter 1

"Okay looks like I got everything," Nathan assured himself with a smile. He was eight years old and had short, spiky, brown hair and eyes. He was an active boy because he almost every day he went outside and explored the woods behind his house, regardless of the weather.

"Notebook, lunchbox, music player. I think that's it." He delightfully chirped to himself carefully putting the items into a dark blue backpack. He slung the back over his shoulders and exited his room.

"Nate, honey?" Nathan heard his mother's voice on the bottom floor of the house. He casually made his way downstairs to his mother. "If you're going to be gone a long time could you lock the door? I'm going to be heading out for a while," Nathan rolled his eyes, he knew what for but decided to ask anyway "To see him again?" he said with disgust. His mom got to his height "Honey, I know you miss your father but you need to move on, like I did." A year ago Nathan's real father was killed in nature. He was attacked by a deer though he wasn't a hunter. He was actually the reason Nathan enjoyed nature. Since his death Nathan made sure he went outside everyday.

Nathan despised his mother's new boyfriend. Not only because he replaced his old father in his mother's heart but because he was a hunter. Though he treated her and Nathan nicely Nathan still hated him. He once went over to his house and was mortified. The heads of murdered animals littered his wall. Bear, wolves and deer were only a few.

"Love you." she changed the subject with a kiss to the cheek. Nathan nodded as she headed out the front door. Nathan following shortly after.

Nathan made his way to his backyard through the snow. Winter had just started and it was a positive sign to him that snow was on the ground already. He trudged his way into the entrance of the woods.

'Now where can I sit down?' Nathan thought to himself. He didn't want to sit in the snow and get his pants wet. He also wanted eat.

Then suddenly he crossed paths a deer. It was brown with a few white spots. It looked back at Nathan with big, brown eyes.

Both Nathan and the deer froze in place. From what he gathered, it was about one year old, maybe older. Nathan was afraid it would attack so he and the deer remained frozen for minutes. 'Maybe if I slowly back away it'll leave.' Nathan backed away slowly. He noticed that the deer was eyeing Nathan curiously. Nathan sighed as the fawn finally ran off. 'Back to business,' he thought to himself.

After some time Nathan found a rock that wasn't completely covered in snow. Brushing off some, he sat down and ate his lunch. 'I wonder whatever happened to that deer I ran into?' he thought while chewing some food.

Some time after lunch he pulled out his notebook. It was a blue spiral notebook with no decorations on it. Inside was a picture of his father feeding a doe. Ironically the picture was photographed the day his dad was killed.

Suddenly Nathan heard some rustling ahead of him.

Nathan cautiously looked up and saw a animal's head poking out of a bush. "That's the deer that I ran into earlier." he whispered. The fawn emerged from the bush, revealing it's whole body. Nathan quickly sketched the deer. Contempt with his work, he looked up again and noticed that the deer was closer than last time. He was getting uncomfortable with the distance between them now.

In seconds the deer was inches away from him. Suddenly he heard the fawn'sstomach rumble. "You're hungry aren't you?" reaching into his lunchbox, he found a single cracker left over from his lunch. He put his hand out and offered the cracker to the fawn. The fawn slowly sniffed it and bit off half of it. Nathan smiled, remembering the picture.

Then a large deer appeared. It had thick brown fur, long antlers and an angry look on it's face. 'Uh-oh' Nathan assumed that deer was the fawn's father.

* * *

**S.i.V: So I should explain myself...**

**A...fallout occured and I ultimately decided to just and up and leave, taking everything with me. I realize that action wasn't proper of me and I wish to apoligize. I'll be reuploading everything**.


	2. Chapter 2

DRIP

…

DRIP

SNIFF

DRIP

AH-CHOO

The fawn awoke with a quick sneeze. He slowly looked around his surroundings with his brown eyes. It was light brown with a few white spots littered around his body. It's ears were tipped with black.

'Uh-oh, where is he?' the fawn thought to himself. He scurried outside into the cold winter. Looking around cautiously for his father.

CRASH

The fawn had run into father and fallen down. He was a darker brown with no spots at all. It's ears were also tipped with black. His antlers were large. He was looking back at the fawn with a suspicious look.

"Oh, good morning," the fawn said innocently getting up from the crash. The father didn't seem phased "Bambi, a prince awakens before the forest. If you're late again I'll have no choice but to-"

A noise interrupted him.

"What was that?" he asked. Bambi crossed his legs "What was what?" he asked as the sound was heard again "Hehe, I guess it was my stomach." The father lightened up on his son "Then you should eat,"

Bambi gave him a questioning look. He realized he'd have to find some. Using his hoof, he moved some snow to reveal a plant growing underneath. He moved out of the way so Bambi could eat. Bambi trotted forward to it but hesitated on eating it "No thank you," he said.

"Have you ever tried it?" his father rebutted.

"Well, no." he said sheepishly.

"Then how do you know you don't like it if you never tried it?"

Bambi reluctantly tried it. He didn't like it but didn't want to show his father. He nodded in false approval.

"Come along, we have to check on the other deer in the south woods." Bambi's face gleamed as he began jumping around excited.

The father tried to get him to calm down "Bambi, a prince does not "woo-hoo" Bambi looked down "He doesn't?"

"He most certainly does not," the father changed his position "A prince maintains control at all times, display dignity, walk with pride." with that he began to walk away. Bambi attempted to mimic his father and was doing fine until they went down hill.

"Woah!" Bambi called out as he slid past his father in the snow. He had no time to react before he slid into a snow pile "I'm okay," he heard Bambi call out.

The two journeyed through the woods until they finally reached a rock overlooking a valley. The two could see other deer. Some were fighting and others were playing.

"Don't you think we should get closer?" Bambi offered. "The distance makes it easier to spot danger." he responded. "But it sure makes it harder to play with them." Bambi thought aloud. His father eyed him suspiciously. Bambi looked at his father "Play is a healthy part of a young deer's development," His father smiled "Is that so?" Bambi nodded "One time my mother and I.."

His father wasn't listening anymore. The instant Bambi mentioned his mother he tried to stop him "Bambi, I think it's best you leave the past in the past. A prince does not look back, only ahead." After a pause his father continued "Come we still have a lot more ground to cover." with that the two were off.

The two were walking for a long time until Bambi lost track of his father. "Dad?" he called out multiple times. At one point the jumped over a bush in an attempt to find his father.

Then suddenly, he spotted a human. He had brown eyes and hair. His hair was short and spiked. He had a frightened look on his face. Bambi froze, horrified, he remembered what they did to his mother. He was terrified to see what he would do to him.

Instead though he began to back away from him 'What is it doing?' he thought watching it back up. He finally took the opportunity and ran away from the human.

Bambi was breathing quickly "That was close." he told himself. Suddenly he heard a familiar voice "Bambi?" he looked down and saw a gray rabbit, his friend Thumper, hiding in a bush.

"Is something wrong Bambi?" he asked. Bambi shook his with a smile "No, nothing's wrong," Bambi tried to change the subject "Why were you hiding?" He looked cautiously around "My mom wanted me to take my sisters to see the groundhog." Bambi cocked his head "What's so bad about that?" he asked. Thumper sighed "Hello? Sisters, they don't leave me alone." Bambi chuckled "Hey why don't we see the groundhog, maybe they're there already. Thumper agreed and the two went off to the groundhog.


	3. Chapter 3

Bambi and Thumper were making their way to the groundhog when they were distracted by snoring. They were looking around for the source when they spotted a flower moving up and down by itself in a log. The two approached the log and saw a skunk snoring, causing the flower to move up and down. It was their friend, Flower.

"Wake up Flower. We're going to go see the groundhog," Thumper called out tapping his foot on the log. As Flower stopped snoring the flower fell over his face. He moved the flower out of his face, revealing one blue eye "Gosh, I hope the groundhog sees his shadow. That way I can go back to hibernating." he said.

"Attention everyone attention. Everybody gather around. Will be starting in just a few moments," the three heard Friend Owl, a friend of Bambi's father, was calling to anybody listening. "C'mon," Thumper yelled to Flower. Bambi and Flower followed him.

The three came to hole close to a tree. It was surrounded by numerous animals that all came to see the groundhog. Among the many animals were Thumper's sisters, who tackled their brother on sight. Bambi and Flower laughed.

"Each year we watch the groundhog emerge from his winter slumber…" He began "…For if he sees his shadow, it means winter will continue, and if he doesn't spring is on it's way. And now without further delay, the groundhog," he proclaimed gesturing to the hole.

However, nothing came out.

"…The groundhog!" he tried again. This time a head cautiously emerged from the hole before popping back down. The animals sighed in disappointment.

Friend Owl flew over to the hole "Now what seems to be the problem?" he spoke into the hole.

"I'm afraid to go out. I'll see my shadow," a voice quickly responded.

"Well isn't that the point?"

"I don't care."

"Must we go through this every year?" Friend Owl said sticking his head into the hole. However he couldn't get his head out. The others began to snicker.

"Hello Bambi." a feminine voice came from behind Bambi. He turned around and saw Faline, a friend of his. She was a light brown deer with light blue eyes. Her presence caused Bambi to back and fall over "H…Hello Faline." she giggled at his response.

The attention returned to Friend Owl as they saw him struggling out of the hole. He finally pulled himself out "The groundhog!" he announced.

The groundhog emerged from the hole with his eyes covered "No shadow. No shadow." he repeated to himself. Though everybody else could see his shadow, a cloud past by and blocked out the sun. The groundhog uncovered his eyes. He looked astonished. "No shadow…no shadow!" he jumped around excitedly "Spring is here! Spring is here!" the other animals joined in his dance.

"Oh I'll never be frightened again," he said with confidence. Suddenly a dark brown deer with green eyes and small antlers jumped in front of the groundhog.

"Boo,"

In a panic the groundhog scurried back into his hole. The deer began laughing hysterically. "It looks like I scared the shadow right of him. Hey did you see-" he stopped when he realized everybody had left. He caught up to Bambi, Thumper, Flower and Faline.

"Hey where is everybody going? Is the forest on fire?" he attempted to make a joke but nobody laughed. "Who are you?" Faline asked the deer. "The name's Ronno and these are my boys…" he gestured to his small antlers "…Stab and Jab." he smiled while attacking a tree. Suddenly pile of snow landed on top of him "Well you three enjoy yourselves," Faline said. Ronno popped his head out of the snow "I wouldn't go that way if I were you. That's where I saw man."

The others turned around frightened "You saw man." Ronno nodded "Yep, there I was, on my way to the groundhog when I saw him walking with a strange thing on his back." Bambi backed away 'Is that the same man I saw?' he thought. Ronno saw him backing away "Hey, what's the matter, you're not afraid are you?" Bambi hesitated but assured himself "No," Ronno grinned "Then prove it," Bambi gulped, regretting what he had said "Follow me," Ronno walked ahead of him.

Bambi, Ronno, Faline, Thumper and Flower walked until Ronno stopped them with a shush. He looked above a bush "Look," the others peered out and saw the man. He had short brown hair and brown eyes. He was sitting on a rock eating some food. Bambi recognized him as the same person.

"Walk up to him." Ronno said devilishly. Bambi had a frightened look on his face. He didn't do anything last time but that could change. Faline walked up to him "Bambi you don't have to do this," Ronno smiled "Yeah Bambi, you don't have to do this, so just run back to your daddy,"

This caused Bambi to brashly run out into the clearing "Bambi no!" Faline called. Ronno looked surprised "Hmph, didn't think he would do it."

The instant Bambi ran out he was overcome by fear and ran back into the bush. Making a noise, he poked his out of the bush and saw he had drawn the attention of the man.

"Well what are you waiting for?" Ronno pestered. Bambi hesitantly emerged from the bush. The man buried his head into something while quickly moving around a stick. Bambi remained frozen in his place. It was only until Ronno pestered him again he began to walk closer. The man lifted his head up while smiling before noticing Bambi getting closer.

"How did I get myself into this?" Bambi asked himself while getting a few inches away from the man. The two paused for a moment. Bambi sighed, he was relived he wasn't doing anything.

Suddenly his stomach growled. He had forgotten he hadn't eaten yet today. "You're hungry aren't you?" he heard the man ask. He reached inside a metal box and pulled out a strange looking rectangle.

Bambi sniffed it suspiciously 'It doesn't smell bad.' he thought to himself. He finally risked it and took a bite. It was bland but he found it enjoyable. He saw the man smile.

"Bambi?"

Bambi turned to his name being called. The voice caused him to shake. Jumping from a bush came his father. He had an angry look on his face. "What are you doing?" he asked.

"Uh-oh,"


	4. Chapter 4

There was a pause before the adult deer charged at Nathan. He tried to get up but scrambled, making everything on the rock fall. In seconds it was on top of Nathan, breathing heavily. Nathan looked over and saw the fawn frozen to the side. Nathan was afraid to move. At any given moment the deer could hurt him with his large antlers.

However, quicker than he attack him. He got off of him and fled. The fawn followed him shortly. The two went back they way the fawn came in. Nathan remained frozen on the ground before finally getting up. He was breathing heavy but quickly returned to normal breathing pace. He got up and put everything back on the rock, shaken by what had occurred. He noticed his notebook had fallen open to the page with the picture of his father feeding the doe. He finally put everything in his backpack. Looking in the direction the two left he thought to himself 'What was that all about? Why did he flee?' he shook his head. Slinging his backpack over his shoulder, he left the woods.

He made his way home and saw his mother was just returning home. He had been gone for a few hours. His mother caught sight of him "Hi honey, how was the woods?" Nathan nodded "It was great and you'll never guess what I ran into," His mother looked at him, waiting for his answer "A deer," His mother seemed excited "Really? That's amazing," Nathan weakly smiled, he figured he'd leave out the part where he was also attacked.

"Oh that reminds me, Ron gave you a gift." his mother said. Ron was her boyfriend that Nathan hated. She reached into her pocket and pulled out what looked like a whistle. She gave it to Nathan "He knows how much you like nature and drawing. So he gave you a deer caller. It's brand new," Nathan cringed, thinking about the adult deer but smiled anyway "Thank you," he said putting it in his pocket. The two heard a wolf howl. They looked up and saw the moon "My, it's that late already?" She looked at Nathan "Time for you to go to bed," she said smiling.

Hours later Nathan was in bed trying to sleep but with no success. He got up and looked outside his window. He had a clear view of the woods. Yet he couldn't get his mind off the fawn. Why had he gotten so close to him when he was terrified of him minutes earlier. Those thought raced through his head while he laid back down. "I'm going to try and find that fawn again," he told himself.


	5. Chapter 5

"Dad?" Bambi was surprised. However his father ignored him and attacked the kid. The man scrambled off the rock and his things fell over the place. Bambi froze up.

"How dare you attack my son!" his father said in anger. He looked over and caught sight of the picture "Oh no," he got off of the man "Bambi, run!" Bambi followed his father ordered and ran behind his father. The two passed right by Faline, Ronno, Thumper and Flower. "What happened?" Thumper attempted to ask Bambi as he ran by. "What do you suppose that was all about?" Faline asked. Flower looked through the bushes "He doesn't look bad," Thumper and Faline looked through as well.

The man was collecting his things and putting them in some larger thing. He then looked over at the bush, causing the others to panic and duck their heads back into the bush.

Bambi and his father stopped running when they reached home. The two were catching there breath when his father scolded him "What were you thinking?"

"It was Ronno, he dared me to-"

"And you listened to him?"

"Yes but-"

"He could've hurt you!"

"The man didn't do anything, he gave me food,"

"Bambi!'

This caused Bambi to cower. His father was breathing heavy. After a minute his breathing returned to normal "Bambi, get inside the den," he said calmly.

"But-"

"Now!"

Bambi was on the verge of tears now. He hastily ran inside, leaving his father alone in the cold. Friend Owl flew onto a nearby branch "What's going on. I heard yelling and-" he heard Bambi crying "What happened?" the Great Prince sighed "Remember all those years ago when that group of humans came in here,"

Friend Owl tapped his chin "Yes I remember now, they were feeding some of the animals, including-"

"That's not important." he interrupted Friend Owl. He took a deep breath "Have you heard about the human that came into the woods?" Friend Owl "Yes I have. He had apparently fed Bambi, from what I heard," the Great Prince looked at him in disbelief "Why do you ask?"

"He had a picture of Bambi's mother and…" he trailed off. Friend Owl was curious "And…?" the great prince sighed "The man I killed." Friend Owl gasped "You mean that was his son?" the great prince nodded "I almost made the same mistake twice." they heard a wolf howl into the night. Friend Owl prepared for flight "Well I should be on my way. Good night Great Prince." with that he was off. The Great Prince returned to his den and fell asleep. Bambi opened one eye, having heard everything.


	6. Chapter 6

Nathan was getting everything ready for another trip into the woods. He was determined to find that fawn again. That moment they had reminded him so much of his father.

Nathan's father, Benjamin, was a kind hearted man. Everything he did was for the better of somebody else, especially Nathan or his wife, Maricel. He taught Nathan how to draw and how to love everything nature gave him. Everyday the three would venture into the thick woods and sit down. Allowing nature to flow without interruption.

Then it happened.

Ben and three friends were going into the woods for a full day. Nathan couldn't go because he was sick at the time; therefore Maricel had to care for him for the day.

Later that day two of them returned in a panic.

"What happened?" Maricel had asked them. The two explained that while they were eating lunch a doe came up to them. Ben had offered it some food and one of the others photographed it. Then a larger deer appeared and attacked Ben and one other.

"We were lucky enough to escape," the first one said. The second one looked down in disappointment "Ben didn't make it. We're sorry,"

Nathan was told the news the next day. How he reacted could of brought any parent to tears. He was also given the photo.

"Always hold it close to your heart," the words his mother had told him when he received the photo ringed through his ears. Snapping out of his trance, he took his pack and headed outside into the woods.

"Bambi, get up,"

"Hmm, huh?"

"We need to talk,"

Bambi opened his eyes and saw his father standing outside. He got up and walked towards him.

"Yes?" he asked a little frightened.

"Bambi, I wanted to apologize for yesterday; It wasn't right of me to do what I did,"

Bambi nodded.

"Now you must be absolutely honest with me,"

Bambi cocked his head.

"That man, didn't hurt you in any way, right?"

Bambi nodded.

"Do you trust him?"

After some thought, Bambi nodded again.

"Alright. You can play with you friends for the day if you'd like,"

Bambi's face lightened up, it was the first time his father had allowed him to do so. He happily skipped away. "Now to find that boy," The Great Prince told himself.

The Great Prince remembers that day too well.

He was looking for his wife at the time. Bambi wasn't coming until another week or so. He hopped over a bush and saw her surrounded by four men. At the time, he thought man was nothing but trouble. So he attacked to protect her. He killed two in the process; the other two escaped.

It wasn't until seconds had passed that she had explained what they were doing. The Great Prince had realized his mistake. The guilt he felt was tremendous. He vowed he would make thing right someday, somehow.

'Now's my chance,' The Great Prince thought to himself.

'Well he isn't where I saw him the first time,' Nathan thought to himself while tapping his chin. He had been retracing his steps through the woods. It was hard considering it's size; It was also very dense, making searching even harder.

RUSTLE

Nathan sharply turned around to find the father deer again. Except this time he had a look of calmness. Nathan dropped his scared appearance and stared at the deer for a while.

Suddenly the deer made a gesture as if to follow him. Nathan curiously followed it.

The two were silent the whole time. Occasionally the deer would look back at Nathan then keep looking forward.

They finally reached what looked like a temple, the woods had naturally over run the place; It was a mixture of plant and stone. Nathan was amazed at this sight, he had never been this deep in the woods; let alone seen this.

Nathan almost bumped into the deer but stopped himself. The deer looked at him then stepped forward to what looked like an alter.

The Great Prince bent his head down and closed his eyes 'Spirits of the Forest, hear my wish; this man and the one before him were both right of mind and heart. Grant him the gift of communicating with nature.' he prayed.

A sudden gust of wind swept through the holes; Taking small amounts of snow with it. The great Prince turned around, knowing he was heard. He looked down at Nathan, who was bewildered.

'What's going on?' Nathan thought falling to his knees. He felt a strange sensation in his throat. It didn't hurt, it actually felt good. His breathing became slower and deeper; he let the feeling overcome him. In minutes the feeling had vanished, the wind had stopped and everything was back to normal. Nathan got up and looked back at the deer; it looked like it was almost grinning. Nathan backed away slowly "Uh, thanks," he said to the deer, figuring he couldn't understand him. He finally left.

"Anytime," Nathan could've sworn he heard someone say.


	7. Chapter 7

'What the heck happened back there?' Nathan thought to himself. He stopped and felt his stomach when it growled.

Nathan managed to relocate the rock he ate lunch at yesterday. He sat back down and began eating again; however he ate slowly this time, he was hoping the fawn would show up.

To his excitement the fawn showed up again. The fawn was quicker in it's movement towards Nathan; It was still cautious though.

Nathan pulled out his crackers again and offered him one. This time the fawn ate the whole thing.

"Thanks," he heard the fawn say delightfully.

"Oh, no problem," he responded.

It took the two a second to realize what had just occurred.

"Ah!" the two screamed backing away from each other. Both were breathing heavily.

"That didn't just happen!" Nathan said loudly. His breathing returned to normal "Yeah, that's it; I'm back at home, sleeping peacefully."

Suddenly Thumper, Faline and Flower came through some bushes.

"Bambi is something wrong? We heard screaming," Faline asked. She then noticed the man and took a step back. His mouth was open in disbelief; then he fell backwards.

"Is he alright?"

"I'm not sure, he looks alive,"

"Hey, he's waking up, be quiet,"

Nathan opened his eyes and looked upwards. He saw two deer, a rabbit and a skunk staring back at him. He slowly got into a sitting position; the other animals backed up.

"Are you okay?" Bambi asked him. Nathan nodded.

"Could one of you do me a favor?" he asked.

They all looked at each other before looking back at him.

"I need of you to hit me,"

"What? Why?" Faline asked.

"Just do it," he insisted.

Thumper stepped forward out of the animals and landed on Nathan's leg. He repeated hit Nathan's leg with his own. He stopped after a few seconds.

"Well?" Thumper asked.

"I'm not dreaming," Nathan said emotionlessly. He got up and began jumping excitedly "I'm not dreaming! Woo-hoo!"

The other animals looked at him curiously. They shrugged and joined in his dance.

Not too far away, the Great Prince watched the entire thing with a small smile on his face. Friend Owl perched himself on branch nearby "So why did you do it?" he turned to him "I figured it was the least I could do for him. He enjoys this place so much and now I made more with his while." Friend Owl nodded "Hmm I see, it also looks like it helped the young prince," The Great Prince looked over at the group. He saw the look on Bambi's face; he had made a new friend.


	8. Chapter 8

Nathan's hype from his newfound ability finally stopped; along with the others dancing. Nathan looked at them curiously "Why did you dance?" he asked them.

"Just excited about a new friend I guess," Flower said bashfully. Nathan laughed "Makes sense, my name's Nathan," he said with a smile. The other animals introduced each other.

Then someone walked in on them, it was The Great Prince.

"Oh, hello dad," Bambi said sheepishly.

'That deer!' Nathan thought. He realized it was the same deer that gave him the power.

"I thought I would drop by and see how you're doing, Bambi," The Great Prince said. Bambi walked up to him excitedly "I'm doing great dad, and I made a new friend."

"Did you now?" he said with fake astonishment. Bambi nodded "Yeah, this is Nathan." Nathan waved to him slowly. The Great Prince nodded "I'll be here to pick you up later, Bambi." Bambi nodded as the Great Prince walked away.

"You're his son?" Nathan asked Bambi. Thumper in front of him "Yeah, he's the young prince," he said excitedly. Nathan nodded slowly, thinking about what the Great Prince did to him.

"So now what?" Nathan asked as he saw the others stare at his backpack. "What's in there?" Thumper asked. Nathan grabbed it and pulled out some of the contents. Everyone gasped in astonishment at everything he pulled out.

"What's this thing?" Faline asked Nathan nudging the blue notebook. Nathan picked it up "It's a notebook, it let's me draw things," Nathan opened the notebook and showed them some of his drawings.

Nathan stopped at the picture of Bambi he had drawn. Bambi looked astonished "Is that me?" he asked. Nathan nodded "Yep, that was when I first saw you," Then suddenly another picture fell out the front of the notebook. The others stared at it "Did you draw this one?" Flower asked. Nathan shook his head "No, this was photographed. Everyone else looked at the picture when Bambi smiled "Hey, that's my mother!"

"Wow, really? Because that's my dad," Nathan smiled pointing to his father. "Where is she?" Nathan asked Bambi. Bambi lost his smile "I'm not sure, dad won't tell me,"

"I almost forgot, where did you learn to talk to animals?" Faline asked. Nathan tapped his chin "All I really know is that I was taken to some temple and-"

"You were taken to the Temple of the Seasons?" Thumper asked in surprise; the others gasped in unison "None of us are allowed there," Bambi said in surprise. Nathan shrugged "Yeah, some deer took me there and-"

Suddenly they heard a wolf's howl.

"Oh my god! It's that late already? I got to go," Nathan said getting up; he recollected his things. He was about to run of when Bambi stopped him. Something in his mouth. It was the picture of his father. He snatched it ran off with a thanks.

"Do you think he'll be back?" Flower asked with a yawn. Bambi smiled "If he came today, he'll be back tomorrow." Flower smiled "That's good, he's a nice person," Flower yawned again "I'm going back home, good night." Bambi, Faline and Thumper said goodbye. "I suppose we should be heading off too," Faline said walking off with Thumper. Bambi said goodbye and realized he left all alone. He remembered his father said he would return for him but never showed up. Bambi fell asleep shortly afterwards.


	9. Chapter 9

Bambi dreamed vividly that night.

He was in a golden field of wheat, dancing and giggling. He caught sight of two butterflies and began to play with them.

"Bambi."

Bambi turned towards the source in confusion; a parade of butterflies lead to one figure in the distance, his mother.

"Mother?" Bambi said in shock and confusion. He suddenly got a big smile on his face; he ran towards his mother.

"I missed you so much," Bambi said while his mother shushed him "There, there; it's going to be all right. You'll see."

"Why did you have to go?"

"Everything in the woods has it's season; where one thing falls, another grows. Maybe not what was there before but something wonderful all the same.

"But I feel so alone."

"I'm always with you, even when you can't see me."

Bambi began nuzzling with his mother.

"I'm here," she repeated.

Bambi awoke the sound of his mother's voice was gone.

"I'm here, hello."

Bambi opened his eyes "Hello?"

"It's me!"

Bambi smiled, running towards the source.

"I'm here."

Bambi ran all around the woods trying to find the source. He finally reached an open field.

"Hello?" Bambi asked. There was no response. Bambi turned around disappointed.

"I'm here."

Bambi curiously walked into the field; continuously hearing his mother's voice.

Bambi made his way deeper into the field when suddenly he heard rustling in some bushes. Crows flew out cawing. It sounded like they were talking.

"Run. Run!" they repeated.

"Where is he?" the Great Prince asked himself. He looked above and saw the crows cawing. He looked in the direction they were coming from. "Bambi," he said instinctively.

Nathan was at home drawing when he heard barking. He looked at a nearby window "What the heck is that noise?" he asked himself aloud. His mother was reading when she answered "It's probably Manny, you know he likes to hunt at night.' Nathan looked and growled to himself "I try not to remind myself." Manny is his mother boyfriend. 'I hope Bambi's not the one there." He thought to himself as mother told him to go to bed. Nathan nodded and went upstairs.

Bambi was petrified, hunting dogs were coming at him quickly. The Great Prince ran into the field and saw Bambi "Run Bambi!" but he did not respond; the dogs were getting closer. The Great Prince ran to Bambi with haste; using his antlers, he fended off the dogs.

After minutes of fighting the dogs fled. As the Great Prince watched them leave, he saw the gleam of a gun. "Get out of here Bambi, now!" there was still no response. He shoved Bambi down, waking him from his trance "Run, Bambi," Bambi responded with a jolt and ran off; The Great Prince followed.

BANG

Nathan jumped and looked out the window; after minutes of staring outside, he went to bed.

Neither Bambi or the Great Prince were shot. The two ran until they were deep in the forest, catching there breath.

"But I was sure it was her. I heard voice-" Bambi began.

"It was one of man's tricks."

"I'm sorry I…I-

"If I haven't gotten there in time you could've been…" He stopped himself "…When I tell you to run, you run, never freeze like that, never."

"I'm sorry." Bambi began but made a few connections; he remembered what his father had said the night before.

"Then why did make Nathan talk to us?" Bambi whispered.

"What? Who are you-"

"Nathan! That man, you made him do that. I heard you and Friend Owl talking. If man is such a problem, why did you give him that?"

The Great Prince was at a lost for words; he had to come clean. He sighed "It's time I told you the truth."

The two walked home; all the time The Great Prince explained what he had done all those years ago.

"You killed Nathan's father?" Bambi asked. The Great Prince nodded "I didn't know what he was doing to your mother. I realized my mistake too late. I needed to make things right." Bambi looked down. The Great Prince looked at Bambi "Bambi, you must promise me that you will never tell him." Bambi nodded.

The two made their way back to the den. Bambi was about to head inside when he asked "She's never coming back, is she?" He was surprised at the maturity of the question "No," he said plainly. Bambi watched his father walk off.

"Friend Owl."

"Hmm? Huh?" he saw The Great Prince.

"Winter is coming to an end; you should have little trouble finding a new home for Bambi." he said as rain began fall.


	10. Chapter 10

Nathan woke up with a jump out of bed; he wanted to see his friends again. He quickly did everything he needed to and headed downstairs. On his way out the door, he caught sight of his mother, who looked like her mind was elsewhere; she had a big smile on her face. He decided to ask "Something the matter?"

"Nothing."

"You're not doing a good job of hiding it then."

She giggled "Sorry, it's just that, I'm considering about letting Manny move in with us."

"Are you know?" he said with fake enthusiasm. She nodded slowly "I think he might propose to me also."

"Great."

"So I want you out of the house for the day."

"I was heading out anyway."

"Good, see you later sweetie."

Nathan closed the door to his house and let out a sigh. He ran into the woods.

"Big brother!"

"Oh big brother."

…

"Big brother!" birds went flying away. Thumper's sisters met at a log "Every time we turn out backs, he's gone," one of them complained.

"Leave no stone unturned, one other said, causing the others to giggle. The four ran off in all directions. Suddenly the log began moving.

"Why are we hiding from your sisters?" Flower asked from inside the log, only to be hushed by Thumper.

"I think they're sweet," Flower asked blushing a little. Thumper looked back at him "Well you don't have to live with them."

THUD

"Back up!" Thumper called out to Flower.

THUD

"Watch it!"

THUD

"C'mon push harder."

They advanced, they both let out a sigh.

THUD

"Ow!"

'Oh for crying out loud!" Thumper called out while getting out of the log; Flower followed shortly after.

"Watch where you're you big-" Thumper stopped himself when he caught sight of Nathan.

"Oh, Nathan, you came back."

"Yeah, what are you doing?"

"Hiding from my sisters."

"Oh, hey Flower."

"Hi."

"So where's Bambi?"

"I think we ran into him back that way." The three hid behind a bush and spotted the Great Prince and Bambi talking.

"You're going to stay near the den where it's safe." the Great Prince began.

"But I'm ready for danger, for adventure, for…for-"

"The den?"

"Yeah, Yeah good idea, I'll stay and guard the den." when the Great Prince was out of sight Bambi dropped his head in disappointment; he began walking back towards the den. The three emerged from the bush and startled Bambi.

"Oh, hey guys."

"Is something the matter?" Thumper asked Bambi.

"Nothing." he responded blandly.

"C'mon, you can tell your bestest friends." Flower and Nathan nodded in agreement.

"Well, my father never takes me with him anymore. I guess I'm not what prince should be. If I could just show him."

"Show him what?" Flower asked.

"That I can be brave, like him," Bambi said with confidence.

"Bravery? What happened?" Nathan asked Bambi. Bambi explained what happened to him last night.

"Oh-no," Nathan sat down in the wet grass. Though snow was still around, spring was starting to show itself. "Is something the matter?" Bambi asked. "I think you ran into my step-father, he's a hunter."

"Step-father? But I thought-" Bambi bit his lip. Nathan didn't seem to notice his slip of the tongue; He sighed.

Thumper tried to redirect the conversation about bravery "If that's all it is…" Thumper hopped onto a nearby rock "…being brave is easy, we could teach you."

"You can?" Bambi smiled.

"Sure, watch this," Thumper puffed up his and growled. Bambi, Flower and Nathan got close as Flower whispered "I think he had a hairball."

"No, I'm being brave. The trick is to be scarier then whatever is scaring you."

"I don't think it works like that Thumper," Nathan said.

"Oh what do you know…" he looked at Bambi "…try this," Thumper made a scary face. Bambi attempted to mimic him. Thumper fell backwards laughing "You look like a squirrel."

"Oh let me try, let me try," Flower insisted as the other three watched. Flower made a face but then suddenly let out gas. "Eww," the three said in unison "You just found your inner strength," Thumper said with tears rolling down his eyes from the smell. Flower giggled at the remark.

"Okay now stand very straight," Thumper said while adjusting Bambi into some position. "Stick out your chest, take the deepest breath you ever took, then let it out."

'This ought to be interesting.' Nathan thought to himself.

What came out of Bambi left everybody speechless. Nathan was holding back a grin as Thumper looked un amused "You're going to be a lot of practice."

Oh, well what did you think Nathan?" Bambi asked.

"I'm not going to lie, that sounded like a goat." Nathan was laughing partially. Bambi looked disappointed.

"You just gotta keep practicing is all. I'm a mountain lion," Thumper said jumping away. Bambi perked up "Oh, yeah, I'm a bear." Bambi trotted off, following Thumper. Flower and Nathan looked at each other before getting up and following the two.


	11. Chapter 11

The four continued to walk through the woods; Nathan and Flower watched Thumper and Bambi continuously growling at different things. Nathan caught himself growling a few times, which made the others laugh.

They eventually made there way to an old log that spanned across a stream. The four hopped on top and walked across. Little did they know someone was watching them. He crept underneath the log and waited for them to cross a certain distance.

"You see Bambi, all it takes is a good grr," Thumper said while reaching halfway across the log. Then the creature jumped and scared them.

"Porcupine!" all of them yelled running back across the log. They all jumped off and ran into some deep grass.

"Get out an' stay ya trespassin' hooligans," the porcupine yelled. He then turned around and started mumbling to himself.

"We could always swim across," offered Flower.

"Uh, guys?" Nathan said pointing to nearby hill. It was the Great Prince.

"We'd best get out here before he sees us," Thumper offered while tip-toeing away. Flower and Nathan following shortly behind.

"Wait guys, this is it. This can prove to him I'm brave." The three looked back at Bambi "Are you sure that's a smart idea?" Thumper asked. Bambi nodded.

"Then you better hurry," Flower said while pointing back at the Great Prince, who was walking away.

"Don't worry, we'll get your dad," Thumper and Nathan both ran after the Great Prince. Bambi and Flower looked at each other; Flower simply shrugged.

Thumper and Nathan hopped across some stones to the other side of the river. "Remember what I told you Bambi. Grr." Thumper winked as the two made it across the river.

Though Bambi hesitantly made his way on to the log; he confidently walked across the log. "I'm walking across this log." he demanded while making his scary noise. Still sounding like a goat.

"Get off me log ya squirrel." The porcupine grumbled.

"I'm not a squirrel, I'm the young prince." Bambi said while trying to walk across. The porcupine kept getting in his way.

Thumper and Nathan spotted the Great Prince; Nathan whispered to Thumper "Any idea how to get his attention?" Thumper grinned "Watch and learn."

"Help! Help!" Thumper frantically screamed while jumping out of the bush. Nathan sighed but followed him. "There's this thing; it's got these eyes and these claws and…and…you gotta see." the Great Prince curiously followed and spotted Nathan "Oh, Nathan, maybe you can explain what's going on." Nathan had to think for a moment before saying "I think it'd be easier to see."

The two were following him for a while before Nathan broke the silence "So, I heard what happened to Bambi." the Great Prince looked back at Nathan "Did you now?" Nathan nodded "I feel as though I can trust you with this but I think my step father attacked him," the Great Prince stopped "You're…" Nathan nodded again "Yeah, step father. I don't like him either but…" Thumper came back to the two "Well what are you waiting for c'mon." Nathan continued walking but the Great Prince stayed behind for a moment longer "He…trusted me…with that?" he quickly dismissed the thought and caught up with Thumper and Nathan.


	12. Chapter 12

"Try again," the porcupine repeated in between laughing. The situation between Bambi and the porcupine was not improving.

"You don't understand, I have to get across," Bambi insisted.

"Then go around," the porcupine said grouchily. "Back in my day we didn't walk willy nilly on to someone's property, we took the long way. It took days, weeks even…" Bambi stopped listening when he saw his father walk by. He knew he needed to act quick.

"…'cause we had a little thing called respect," the porcupine finished as he saw a shadow go over him. He turned around and saw Bambi landing. With his tail in the air and a smile on his face, he continued walking across.

"You did it Bambi!" Flower said jumping in excitement.

"Oh, you've done it alright." the porcupine said while cracking his back. His quills suddenly stood erect.

"Look out!"

Bambi turned around and saw the porcupine charging at him. Bambi ran farther across the log then turned around again; he noticed the porcupine was gone.

Suddenly the porcupine appeared in front of him.

"Here I am."

Bambi turned around and ran again. The porcupine quickly appeared in front of him again through a trap door in the log.

"Here I am again."

"Hurry up it's over here!" Thumper said while looking through a bush; the Great Prince was nearby. Nathan knelt down "How's it going?" The face Thumper made while removing his head from the bush suggested not to well. "Uh, whoops, wrong way," Thumper quickly improvised. Nathan and the Great Prince followed shortly.

What happened to Bambi next happened quickly. Through a quick reflex he moved his body up and the porcupine went under him. It spun out of control and landed on it back. Its quills stuck in the log. In rage it jumped, taking a piece of the log with it. He looked at Bambi with intense anger. Bambi ran away but the porcupine chased him. Then Bambi stepped on a trap door; causing the porcupine to get launched in the air and exposing Bambi's backside.

"Ah!"

"What was that?" The Great Prince asked. Thumper and Nathan panicked. "It was probably a bird, that's it a bird." Thumper quickly stammered. The Great Prince ignored his statement and walked towards the source. "Oh, no," Nathan whispered.

Bambi brought his head above water; gasping for air. He looked back up at the log, the porcupine looked triumphant.

"Ha! That'll teach ya! Think twice before ya come trespassin' 'round here." the porcupine was retreating back towards land; grumbling to himself. Coincidentally, the Great Prince was walking nearby. Bambi quickly went underwater. The Great Prince did not notice Bambi go under but did see the porcupine. The two met eyes.

"What are ya lookin' at ya moose?" he retorted before going back into his log. The Great Prince looked at Thumper and Nathan; waiting for an explanation. The only thing to come out of the two was a weak smile; then they bolted. With a sigh, the Great Prince left the scene.


	13. Chapter 13

Bambi's head shot up, gasping for air from staying under too long. He slowly got out of the water while Flower, Thumper and Nathan ran over to him.

"Bambi, are you okay?" Flower asked. With a moan Bambi turned around, showing many quills in his backside "How does it look?" he was almost afraid to ask.

"Oh…" all three said in unison "I'm not gonna lie, it ain't purty," Thumper admitted.

"It's hopeless, I'm a coward." Bambi said weakly. Nathan and Flower tried to convince him otherwise.

"No you're brave, that's the farthest anybody has ever gone!" Thumper in a triumphant voice to Bambi. Nathan and Thumper began pulling the quills; Bambi yelped as each one was plucked.

"Bambi, are you alright?"

Nathan stopped plucking and looked towards the source along with Flower; Thumper was still plucking quills. Faline was running and Ronno was walking towards them.

"Bambi what happened?" Faline asked as Thumper was about to get rid of the last quill. However Bambi turned around at the last second, causing Thumper to fall.

"Bambi got stuck by a porcupine." Nathan responded watching Thumper get back up.

"A porcupine? Where?" she asked trying to get behind Bambi, he kept getting in her way. Which made grabbing the last quill even harder for Thumper.

"I'm fine, really it's just-Yow!" Bambi suddenly jumped. He turned around and saw Nathan holding the last quill "Got it," he said with a smile. Bambi couldn't help but grin; he tried to look angry though.

"Bambi! I thought I recognized that scream," Ronno said with a grin. He then caught sight of Nathan. Nathan noticed him stop quickly but pick up in speed immediately. "I'm surprised to see you moving," Ronno continued.

"It was only a porcupine," Bambi insisted. Ronno snickered at his response.

"Oh no, I'm talking about how you froze in the meadow," he said receiving shove from Faline. Ronno got closer "And right in front of your father." Bambi looked down in sorrow.

"It's okay Bambi, if it wasn't for deer like you, we wouldn't be able to tell the brave from the cowards." he received a glare from Faline and Nathan.

"I'm not a coward," Bambi insisted while making his brave noise again; and awkward pause ensued.

"Uh yeah sure," Ronno was holding back a laugh. He turned towards Faline "C'mon, let's go."

"No, I'm staying," Faline said in a serious tone. Ronno didn't listen and proceeded to shove her away.

"Hey! Quit it," Bambi blurted suddenly. Ronno stopped and turned to him slowly "Did you say something, Bambi?"

"Well I uh…" Bambi stammered "…I mean yes, leave her alone." a glare was all it took to make him stop. "…please?"

"You tell him Bambi!" Thumper yelled, earning a nod from Flower. Ronno turned his attention to Thumper and Flower and began insulting them. Leading in Thumper shoving Bambi, which made Bambi push Ronno into the mud.

Nathan jumped up; everybody else gasped. Ronno growled and chased after Bambi and Thumper. Flower fainted from the action.

"Run, Bambi!" Faline yelled. Nathan chased off after them; Faline followed Nathan.

Bambi and Thumper were running when they suddenly reached a large chasm with mud at the bottom. "Turn around!" Thumper quickly called out. They were cut short by Ronno.

"Other way!" Thumper called out again jumping onto Bambi. Bambi was running when he suddenly gained speed and jumped.

Nathan and Faline stopped near a large mud hole to catch their breath. "Any clue where they went?" Nathan asked Faline. She simply shook his head "No, I lost track-"

"WOAH!"

Both Nathan and Faline looked around "Did you hear that?" Faline asked. "Yeah but…" suddenly Nathan looked up "Sorry I got to get home." Faline said good bye as he ran off. Faline looked up as well before seeing Ronno fall into the mud.

"Ronno? What happened?"

"Shut up."


	14. Chapter 14

Nathan was rushing down the stairs to head outside when his mom stopped him "Nathan? Why are you always rushing outside nowadays?" Nathan paused for a moment before noticing a ring on her hands; he knew what it meant but he figured it was a good enough distraction.

"Where did you get the ring from?" he asked. Maricel held up her hand and stared at the ring "Isn't beautiful? Manny gave it to me yesterday. We're going to get married in late spring," Nathan nodded while slowly walking behind her for the door.

"Oh and Nathan, Manny will be coming over later today, you can come to see him if you'd like."

"I'll try to keep that in mind," Nathan said closing the door behind him.

"C'mon Bambi, you jumped farther than this yesterday," Thumper persuaded Bambi next to a pinecone; Bambi was up on a rock looking down at Thumper, looking hesitant.

"I don't know," Bambi said with a hint of fear.

"You're not afraid are ya?" Thumper began to coax Bambi with a dance. Bambi backed off of the rock, only to reappear launching himself off of it. Thumper crouched down to avoid getting hit. However, Bambi's jump left a great distance between the two.

"You did it!" Thumper cheered. Bambi walked over to Thumper "Set it up farther away," Bambi asked Thumper. When Thumper placed the pinecone down farther away he noticed he placed it on a foot. He looked up and saw Nathan.

"Hey Nathan," Thumper and Bambi said with delight. Nathan greeted them and asked what they were doing.

"Bambi wanted to practice his jumps considering what happened yesterday," Nathan remembered he missed out on what happened yesterday and asked what happened.

"It was amazing! He made this jump that was over one hundred feet!" Thumper exclaimed moving his hands to show the distance, ultimately falling over. Making both Bambi and Nathan laugh.

"So what happened?" Nathan decided to ask Bambi instead. Bambi had to stop laughing and explain.

"Ronno was chasing us when we reached a giant gap. We were cornered between the gap and Ronno. So I jumped the entire gap," Nathan looked surprised "Really?" Bambi nodded proudly.

"Yeah, then his dad caught him," Thumper added, still on the ground. Nathan looked back at Bambi.

"Well yeah but it didn't turn out the way you think it did."

"WOAH! OOF!"

Bambi and Thumper had successfully made it across. With a chuckle Bambi looked back a the other side; Ronno was at the edge. Thumper began taunting him when Ronno suddenly cowered and backed away. When Bambi turned around, he ran into his father. "Oh…hello," Bambi said sheepishly.

"I thought I told you to stay near the den…" the Great Prince said harshly "…when I give you an order I expect you to…How did you…" the Great Prince looked up at the gap "Did you jump?" Bambi hesitantly said yes. The Great Prince seemed impressed "I didn't make a jump like until I had antlers," hearing that gave Bambi a big smile across his face. The Great Prince smiled also but quickly stopped "Yes, well, we should be going…um…home" he quickly added before turning around. Bambi followed after him, smiling.

Ronno watched the event unfold and came back to the edge "Big deal, anybody can make that jump," Ronno attempted to make the jump but fell into the mud.

"_Ever since me and Thumper have been practicing," Bambi finished as he made his way back up on the rock. "Watch this," Bambi said jumping without looking; unknowingly landing on Thumper._

"_Did I make it?" Bambi asked looking for Thumper. He caught Nathan holding back a laugh._

"_Yup, you made it alright," Thumper said below Bambi. The three broke into laughter only to be halted by the Great Prince._

"_What exactly are you doing?" he asked them._

"_I'm practicing my jumps," Bambi explained. The Great Prince simply nodded and walked away. Leaving the three in confusion._

"_I don't get it, he liked it yesterday," Bambi asked Thumper and Nathan._

"_What's he doing anyway?" Thumper asked. Bambi shook his head "I'm not sure but he does a lot of it,"_

"_So, ask him," Nathan said. Bambi looked at him then back at Thumper, who was nodding. _

"_Yeah, parent's love getting asked questions. Lots and lots of question."_

"_Really?" Bambi lightened up._

"_Yeah," Nathan said "Come on, we'll come with you," Nathan winked at Thumper, Thumper began giggling. Thumper began hoping up to the Great Prince with Bambi. However Thumper began hoping backwards back towards Nathan. Bambi hadn't noticed yet._

_Bambi was right beside his father when he turned around and saw Nathan and Thumper at the bottom of the hill. Bambi began to panic._

"_Uh…" the Great Prince looked at Bambi "…uh…what are you doing?"_

"_Observing," was all the Great Prince said._

"_Oh…what's that?"_

"_It's…uh…it's hard to explain," the Great Prince said. He saw he had disappointed him so he tried again._

"_You have to look, smell and listen all at once," he explained. Bambi nodded and attempted to mimic his father. _

"_Try to feel the forest around you," The Great Prince added. Bambi took deep breath and listened around him. "I don't feel anything," Bambi finally said. _

"_Does are playing in the meadow," The Great Prince said with his eyes closed. Bambi was amazed "How do you know?"_

"_I can feel it in my hooves. If there was danger, they would be stomping," he said._

"_Wouldn't you be afraid?" Bambi asked._

"_Perhaps, but I would still come. A prince can't let fear cloud his vision,"_

"_Wow, you know everything," Bambi said with a smile. The Great Prince chuckled "Well, not everything," he admitted. After a pause he spoke again "Well, I must be on my way, the forest awaits," Bambi watched him walk away before he turned around and asked._

"_Are you coming?"_

_Bambi almost jumped in excitement and caught up with his father and the two went off._

_Nathan and Thumper looked at each other with triumph "We're such geniuses,"_

"_Big brother!"_

"_Aw for crying out loud. C'mon Nathan," Thumper ran off. Nathan followed shortly after._


	15. Chapter 15

"Are you sure we lost them?" Thumper asked Nathan. The two had spent the day avoiding his sisters. "Let me check," Nathan popped his head out of the bush the two were hiding in before fully stepping out. He was approached by four cream colored rabbits.

"Are you that Nathan kid are mom told us 'bout?" they asked. Nathan got close to their height "Yes I am, can I help you?" he noticed one of them looking around him, whispering to the other three, then giggle. "No, it's okay we can help ourselves. Get him!" they all ran past Nathan and into bush. Nathan turned around and saw Thumper's ears protruding from the bush. They suddenly disappeared into the bush through screams and giggles.

"I'll be on my way home Thumper, see ya round."

"Bye Nathan," All five rabbits said. Nathan walked away with a smile.

The Great Prince and Bambi had spent the entire day traveling across the woods. Throughout it all, Bambi was learning how to become a prince; while the Great Prince learned how to be a better father.

The two were standing idle close together, they looked like they were focusing on something.

Suddenly Bambi jumped out of his trance "I hear it! I hear it!" he ran off while his father stood there; he was proud of him.

Bambi came to an open field and saw numerous deer running. He stopped smiling when he spotted Ronno stopping to look at him. He looked away with a huff and ran off again. Bambi stood there bewildered while his father walked.

"When will I get my antlers?" he heard his father laugh.

"It won't be long now, if you're anything like I was,"

"Am I?" he asked.

"Only one way to find out," the Great Prince said running ahead. Bambi followed after him.

The Great Prince ran ahead of the entire group. Bambi was coming up behind, he was unknowingly coming in front of Ronno. Ronno was struggling to stay ahead. After seeing his father persuade him to come to him. Bambi ran ahead of Ronno barely competing.

It was nighttime when the Great Prince and Bambi had made their way back to the den when the Great Prince was struggling to fall asleep because of Bambi excitedly talking. After a few minutes Bambi finally fell asleep. The Great Prince took the advantage and fell asleep as well.

Nathan was sitting at home reading an austrian book when suddenly the doorbell rung. Maricel jumped up and answered the door. It was a man with brown hair in a ponytail with brown eyes. He was wearing a red and black flannel with blue jeans. He was holding a bouquet of flowers in his hand.

"Hello Maricel."

"Hello Manny."


	16. Chapter 16

**Before I proceed, credit must still go to gw1000 for the character of Garret and the quick little thing about the gun.**

* * *

"Oh gee, would you look at my wrist it's high time I go to bed," Nathan hastily said while heading to the stairs only to be cut off by Manny.

"Well wait a minute I wanna introduce you to someone," Manny stepped out of the way to introduce another kid, slightly older than Nathan. He was a chubby kid with brown eyes and sandy blonde hair combed to the hair. He had a friendly smile on his face.

"Meet Garret, my boy," Manny spoke as Garret silently brought his hand out for Nathan to shake. As Nathan did so, he cringed, the kid was strong.

'Why am I hearing of a son now?' Nathan thought to himself.

"We figured you too could get to know one another while Manny and I went out for dinner," Nathan shrugged as Manny got down on one knee and placed his hand on Nathan's shoulder.

"I also wanna give you something Nate," Manny reached into his back pocket and grabbed something. A deer caller was placed in his hands.

"Oh…you shouldn't have…" Nathan spoke through his teeth.

"Oh well-"

"No you really shouldn't have," Nathan said throwing the deer caller and nearby dresser. Maricel grabbed Nathan and gestured to the stairs

"Could you excuse us a second,"

"Of course," Manny smiled.

"Nathan I want you to behave for him and Garret, he's going to be your new father, you have to accept that," Nathan looked down, avoiding eye contact with his mom. Maricel sighed.

"Can you at least be friendly towards Garret, for me?" Nathan smiled as she said 'for me', Nathan shrugged as he received a kiss on the forehead.

"Now, will be back in a hour, bye."

Nathan proceeded to read the book, mainly because Garret didn't bother him. Finally five minutes before Maricel and Manny returned home. Garret spoke to him.

"So what are you reading?" Garret spoke timidly. Nathan looked away from his book and paused.

"Oh, just some foreign story about a deer with paranoia…" Nathan decided to humor Garret "…so what are you doing?"

"Oh, I've been polishing my gun, you see my dad and I were gonna go hunting tomorrow, would you wanna come?" Garret asked innocently. Nathan laughed.

"Sorry but hunting's not my thing, mind if I see your…gun?" Nathan stumbled over his sentence trying to find the proper wording but Garret didn't seem to notice. Garret went into the other room and ran back in with a rifle.

"Oh, that's so…" Nathan tried to find the right word to lie with "…interesting. What kind of gun is it?" Nathan asked.

"Well if you wanna know, it's a Remington seven hundred bolt action rifle, made in nineteen forty eight. The bolt is manually operated by hand with 2 forward opposed dual lugs and a rear safety lug formed by the bolt handle lug, which is formed by the bolt handle lug sitting in the receiver recess. The bolt is recessed fully inclosing the cartridge. The two hundred seventy round is effective up to one thousand meters and can be used from deer to bear. It also has a Leupold four by twelve scope. You see dad has this-" Garret stopped as he saw Nathan grasp his head "Are you okay?" Nathan got out of the chair, rubbing his temples.

"Yeah, I'm fine, just gonna go to bed…" Nathan called out to Garret before muttering "…and get an Advil." He closed the door to his room as he heard his mom and Manny return. He got into his pajamas and lay down in his bed.

PECK, PECK

"Huh?" Nathan looked at his window curiously. He heard some noise coming from it. He opened it and saw a gray owl with yellow eyes staring back at him, it was standing on a nearby tree branch.

"Hello there," it said loudly. Nathan said hello also "Uh, can I help you?" the owl hopped onto the windowsill "Well first allow me to introduce myself, I'm Friend Owl, I assist the Great Prince in certain matters," Nathan nodded, still not certain why he came.

"I just wanted to personally thank you for being there for Bambi, when he needed someone,"

"Oh yeah sure, no problem," Nathan said delightfully.

"It's been hard for him to adjust to…" Friend Owl stopped himself.

"To what?" Nathan asked. Friend Owl quickly changed the subject.

"Oh, uh nothing," he quickly tried to change the subject "My, look at the time, I'm tired, I should be on my way," with that Friend Owl quickly flew off.

"What are you…you're nocturnal!" he said watching him fly off. He closed the window slowly and went back to bed.

It was daytime back in the woods as Bambi and the Great Prince awoke later than intended and headed out starting there day.

"Remind me never to let you eat blossoms before bedtime," the Great Prince said while Bambi was excitedly jumping around. They were suddenly greeted by Friend Owl.

"Well hello, I thought you'd be at the south meadow by now,"

"Well yes I was-oof! Distracted…" the Great Prince said while getting playfully rammed by Bambi.

"So I see…" Friend owl cleared his throat "Well I came here to introduce you to someone," the two stared at the doe he had brought with him. She was a light brown tone, with brown eyes.

"This is Meena," he said. She bowed respectfully.

"Bambi wait by the den," The Great Prince said, he was ignored.

"So this is Bambi, I've heard so much about you," she said in a warm tone "You know your mother and I grew up together,"

"Bambi wait by the den!" the Great Prince demanded. Bambi looked at his father "But I want to hear about mother," he said with a smile.

Meena chuckled "There will be plenty of time for that, once we get you settled,"

The smile quickly disappeared from Bambi's face. He turned to his father "You…You're sending me away?"

"No just…" the Great Prince tried to explain.

"But I did everything you did. I even heard with my hooves!"

"Bambi! A prince-"

"That's all you care about, not about me,"

"Bambi don't-!"

"I wish mother were here instead of you!" Bambi cried out, running away. The Great Prince stood there,"

Friend Owl felt terrible "My I certainly made a muddle of things,"

"No this is my fault…" the Great Prince looked at them "Bambi needs a mother…a prince should not be raising a child." he said walking off to find Bambi.


	17. Open Lands

Bambi ran back to the den in a fit of holding back his tears, not wanting to attract too much attention to him. Shortly after however, his friends started showing up; Thumper and his sisters, Flower even Faline showed up, all noticing Bambi's sorrow. After asking Bambi had come clean with them explaining that he was being sent away to a place far away from the forest.

"I sure am gonna miss you guys," Bambi said in faltering voice. The others were looking just as despondent. Bambi perked his ears to the rustling noise behind him, only to see Nathan pop out of a bush.

"Hey guys…" Nathan said happily noting the others sad mood "…something up?" "Bambi's movin' away," one of Thumper's sister spoke, Nathan sat down because of the news.

"…How? Why?" Nathan finally asked.

"The Great Prince is sending him away," Flower said sadly. Bambi hadn't looked away from the ground since Nathan showed up.

"How far away?" Nathan asked next.

"None of us will be able to see him. Our parents say it's too far," Faline said.

"Oh…Bambi I'm so sorry…Bambi?" Nathan spoke when he suddenly noticed a scowl on Bambi's face. The others turned to Bambi, waiting for some sort of response. Some emotion was building in Bambi, anger. Anger in his dad sending him away, anger in not being able to see any of his friends and anger in his mom not being here when he needed her most. Finally Bambi blurted out.

"My dad killed your dad!" he screamed quickly. While the others gasped at what they had heard. Nathan asked to hear it again to clarify. Bambi spoke still in rage.

"My dad…he killed yours, years ago…that's why he gave you that power, he was sorry for you," Nathan's heart froze over quicker than the river that ran through the woods. He was a just a charity case to him? Tears began forming in his eyes, blurring the image of his friends around him. He barely heard the Great Prince walk in on them.

"Bambi…hmm?" he began but caught sight of the crying Bambi and Nathan. When Nathan saw the Great Prince, he stood up and ran off, crying noises becoming evident. The Great Prince figured simply not to ask.

"Bambi…" he tried again "it's time,"

Nathan ran back inside his house crying loudly. He slammed the door behind him and slid down on it to the floor, burying his head in his arms.

"Nathan?" he looked up to see Garret looking down at him, a concerned look on his face. He had the rifle slung over his back. Nathan stood up wiping the tears away.

"Y…Yeah I'm fine," Nathan spoke in a still shaky voice "What's with the gun?"

"As if you have to ask," Garret joked "Dad and I are going hunting," as Garret said that, Manny showed up, two things were concealed in his hands.

"Oh, Nathan, just the one I was looking for," he revealed from his hands two deer callers "I guess I gave you two by accident. How silly of me huh?" Manny and Garret laughed a little. When Nathan saw the two deer callers in his step father's hands, an idea instantly sparked in his head.

"Uh, Manny," Nathan spoke, a little more confidence was in the second half of his question.

"Do you mind if I come with you?"


	18. Lake Brave

The Great Prince and Bambi were slowly walking through the woods back to Meena and Friend Owl. The tension between the two kept them from looking at each other. Bambi was looking down as the Great Prince was looking ahead.

"A prince must learn to make sacrifice Bambi. It is important to think of others before you think of yourself. Do you understand?" The Great Prince strained to speak, something caught in his throat made it hard for him to speak. He looked down and saw Bambi nodding.

"I'll visit you when I can. Promise me you'll be good for Meena," the Great Prince earned another nod.

"And never forget, you are a prince," Bambi looked up at his father with his tear stained brown eyes. He suddenly held his head high in confidence and proudly walked over to Meena, impressing the Great Prince. Before officially leaving, Bambi ran back to his father one last time. After a moment of being close Bambi ran back to Meena and the two left. The Great Prince watched the two disappear from view before walking back to the den in the shadows, the sun was beginning to set already.

Meena and Bambi weren't walking for too long before Bambi stopped and perked his ears up, having thought he heard something emerge from the bushes. He kept walking as he saw Ronno appear.

"Hello princess," Ronno began with an insult, to which Bambi tried his best to ignore him. Ronno saw this and cut in front of him "You're not leaving without saying goodbye are you? I thought we were becoming the best of friends," Ronno saw that he was being ignored and spoke again.

"It must be a crying shame to know that you have a father that hates you so much that he'd give you away," Bambi stopped walking and turned to Ronno, anger evident in his eyes. With a jump he charged at Ronno, sending him to the ground with a thud.

"Bad move princess," Ronno spoke as he stood back up, charging at Bambi.

"Okay dad it's set up!" Garret said running back to Manny and Nathan, who were hiding behind a bush. Nathan nudged Manny.

"What did he just do?" Nathan asked. Manny pointed out the trap, it was well concealed.

"When anything steps on it, its leg will get caught…" Manny began.

"And while they try to get out, the cowbells will sound. Our dogs will hear it and attack," Garret finished. Nathan nodded as Manny brought the two boys heads down.

"Shh, something's comin'," Manny whispered pointing to deer that appeared to be fighting. Nathan identified Bambi and Ronno. Nathan saw a new deer show up and step into the trap.

"Children please…!" Meena began calling out as she suddenly felt a pain in her leg. She looked back and saw that her leg was snagged and being hoisted up. As she tried to break free, she heard a mixture of loud noises and barking. Bambi and Ronno stopped their fighting as they heard the barking of many dogs.

"Run, young ones, run away from here, now!" Meena called to them. Ronno ran away screaming and crying for his mother. Bambi stood frozen in fear, like back in the valley.

"Bambi!" Meena managed to snap Bambi out of it. Causing him to run away as well.

"We got a doe dad," Garret said. Manny nodded as he turned to Garret.

"Good, take care of the two young ones. I got the doe…!" Manny stopped as he saw another deer come in, not noticing Garret sneak away. Nathan noticed his falter.

"Is something wrong?" Nathan asked as Manny pointed out to the deer. Nathan identified it as the Great Prince.

"That deer, he's been the sight of many for over five years. He's so hard to come by. There's even an one million dollar reward for his capture he's so wanted."

"A million dollars for him?" Nathan asked in disbelief. Manny nodded.

"We call him the Great Prince," Nathan cringed at the irony of the name. Nathan fished into his pocket and found the deer caller, then ran off.

"Where are you going?" Manny asked, gaining no response.

The Great Prince managed to break Meena free. She shook her leg to get it used to movement again.

"Where's Bambi?" he asked. Meena looked behind her, which was all the Great Prince needed. Meena looked back before being interrupted by the barks of dogs. She ran away, just dodging the dogs and a shot from Manny.

"Dammit, got away…"

"Bambi? Where are you?" the Great Prince called out hoping to find his son before the hunters or the dogs.

"Dad?" the Great Prince stopped in his tracks.

"Dad!" he heard his son's voice again and jumped over a bush to save him. Instead however, he saw Nathan holding a deer call and a gun.

"Nathan, what are you-" the Great Prince was interrupted by the click of a gun.

"Just shut up!" Nathan spoke trying to sound threatening.

"I don't have time for this, Bambi is in trouble and I-"

"I know," Nathan finished, making the Great Prince stifle a gasp.

"You're part of this aren't you?" Nathan nodded.

"Bambi told me what you did to my father," Nathan positioned the gun so he was looking down the iron sight, aiming straight for his chest.

"Nathan, I'm deeply sorry for what I did but now is not the time to let this cloud your vision. My son is in danger!" the Great Prince attempted to run past Nathan only to be stopped by him shoving it forward, threatening to shoot. The Great Prince was about to speak but ended giving out a long sigh.

"I guess I thought I could escape my actions, and because of what I've done, my son will suffer," Nathan lowered the gun.

"What do you mean?"

"Nathan if you feel as though it will make it right. You can kill me where I stand, I will not fight," Nathan looked at him in disbelief "But know this Nathan, if you kill me now, an innocent boy who has suffered the same as you will die, unless I help him," Nathan looked at him before lifting the gun again. He was staring down the iron sight again with one eye open.

"I understand," the Great Prince said closing his eyes, expecting his fate to come. Nathan's grip on the gun was beginning to shake before finally…

BANG

Nathan opened his eyes to see that he had actually fired his gun. Except from the shaking of his gun, his aim was lowered to just below the Great Prince, missing him. The Great Prince opened his eyes and saw what Nathan had done. Nathan looked back at the Great Prince. Did he really want to do this? What would his father think? After everything he had taught him he would've just thrown it away. Nathan looking at the gun one last time, threw at the ground, earning a smile from the Great Prince.

"Thank you," he smiled. There attention was brought back to the situation as they heard dogs barking. The Great Prince simply nodded as he ran off in hopes of finding of his son. Nathan stood there as Garret walked in, seeing the gun on ground.

"Nathan, what are you doing?" Garret asked as he saw tears forming in his eyes. Nathan wiped them away with a grin.

"I'm helping a friend," Nathan said running off after the Great Prince.


	19. The Hunt

Bambi didn't know where he was running, all he knew was that he was running as far as his legs could carry him. When he looked back to see if he was followed, he suddenly felt something click in the back of his head. By running, he was proving Ronno right in being a coward. A confident look spread across his face as he ran back the other way.

The Great Prince and Nathan were running frantically through the forest, attempting to find Bambi when they came across two of the dogs, focused on the Great Prince. Just as he prepared to defend himself, Bambi jumped out of the bushes at their side, startling both of them. Bambi made his scary noise again then ran off, diverging the attention from the two to him. Leaving the two stunned for a moment. The Great Prince silently sprinted off after Bambi. Nathan heard more barking as he saw two more dogs coming at him.

"Ugh, what's with all the racket?" Nathan looked down at his feet and saw Thumper and Flower popping out of the same bush Bambi did, they turned and spotted the dogs.

"You think you can help me stop those dogs?" Nathan asked. He could hear Thumper gulp but talk in confidence.

"Y…You kidding me, we can handle these right Flower?" Thumper turned to notice that Flower wasn't at his side anymore. He pulled him out of the bush by his exposed tail. Nathan thanked them and ran off. Flower turned to Thumper, putting his back to the dogs.

"How are we gonna stop them Thumper?" Flower asked. Thumper thought for a minute then brought his head up in realization. Thumper then used his scary face on Flower, Flower responded with a scream and gas. The dogs stopped in their tracks and ran away, whimpering. Flower looked at what he had done.

"That'll do Flower, that'll do," Thumper joked "C'mon, he gotta help Bambi," Thumper added while running off with Flower

Bambi was still being chased by dogs but managed to keep a good lead on them. The chase brought him back to the porcupine's log, and then he got an idea.

Bambi tapped harshly on the log, bringing the porcupine up in anger.

"What the-you again? Didn't ya learn anythin' the last time ya went trespassin'?" the porcupine asked harshly.

"Oh I learned plenty," Bambi smiled as he stepped on the trap door to the log, sending him flying into the air and onto a dog only a few feet behind Bambi. The porcupine and the dog fell off the log and into the log. Bambi looked back and saw three more dogs coming at him. Bambi started running again.

Nathan, Flower and Thumper were running to try and catch up to the Great Prince, who leaped the entire gap the log spanned. The three opted to run across the log, they stopped when they saw the porcupine shaking his paw at them.

"What do ya think you're doing you…ah phooey," the porcupine surrendered and shook himself of any leftover water and returned to inside his log.

"What do you think that was all about?" Flower asked, catching up to Nathan and Thumper who ran ahead. They simply shrugged.

Bambi ran back into the field. Hoping to find a way to lose three dogs that were chasing him. He accidentally ran into a patch of thick grass that was taller than him, he couldn't see. Panic began to settle in as he heard the dogs growling.

"C'mon think," Bambi thought as he suddenly got an idea. Bambi closed his eyes and focused on the vibrations of the earth, he was listening with his hooves. With a sidestep he saw the two dogs collide into each other. He ran away shortly after.

Nathan and the others saw the Great Prince leap through the field. Nathan was the first to catch the dogs that were coming at him though.

"He look ou-"

BANG BANG

Nathan and the others jumped to the gunshots from behind them. The shots didn't anybody, but scared the dogs away. Nathan turned around and Garret putting his gun to his side.

"Garret, why are you…?"

"I could ask the same thing as to why you ditched us in the hunt." Nathan looked down at Thumper and Flower. Nathan was about to explain but Garret stopped him.

"I never wanted to hunt, I'm just doing it so my dad will love me. Ever since mom passed away he's been, different," Garret spoke dropping his gun.

"Garret?" Nathan asked, he could see tears in his eyes now.

"I'm not gonna stop you Nate, you need to do whatever you need to do," Garret said running away. Nathan stood there as he heard Thumper call from a distance.

"C'mon Nathan, hurry up," Nathan ran to him with a jump

"Uh-oh!" Bambi gulped as he saw that he was officially cornered into a mountain. He turned around and saw a heavy amount of movement from the opening. Bambi began to panic. He quickly sighed as he saw his father jump out and run to his side.

"Bambi are you alright?" he asked, looking him over to make sure he wasn't hurt, he mainly saw dirt scuffs.

"I'm okay," Bambi reassured as he saw Nathan, Thumper and Flower come out too. He ran over to them smiling, Friend Owl and Meena came in as well.

"Well it seems as though everything worked out for the better," Friend Owl smiled as he heard someone jump out of the bush. It was Manny, he had a vicious scowl on his face, making the others jump.

"Me and my big mouth," Friend Owl muttered.

"I finally got ya Great Prince, the money is all mine," Manny spoke in a voice that almost seemed insane. The click of a gun was heard.

"Manny, no!"

"Father!" Bambi said ramming Manny, sending his gun upward.

BANG

"Ah!" Bambi fell to his side.

"Bambi!" the Great Prince said as he heard Bambi scream. Fueled by paternal instinct, he charged at Manny, who was reloading his gun. The force of the attack sent Manny into a tree and knocked him out cold. The Great Prince brought his antlers to Manny's throat, rage evident in his eyes.

"Great Prince!" Friend Owl tried to stop him. Nathan ran to his side, the Great Prince didn't look away from Manny.

"Don't do this, please, don't do this again," Nathan could see the Great Prince's look of rage slowly fade away into one of sorrow. With a sigh, he turned away from Manny and looked back to his son. The Great Prince knelt down by his side and brought his head to the body.

And heard breathing.

The Great Prince brought his head up when he heard Bambi groaning. Bambi brought his head up as well, bringing it close to his fathers.

Nathan smiled as he heard the faint sound of whimpering. He looked down and saw Thumper crying. He tapped him with his foot, making him struggle to cover it up.

"I'm not crying," Thumper defended. Making the others laugh.


	20. Chapter 20

Three months later.

"…There were thousands of dogs, Bambi wasn't a bit scared," Thumper was telling a story to some of the woodland animals, including his sisters, Flower, Friend Owl, Faline and even the porcupine, all waiting for someone to show up.

"It got closer!" He directed to his sisters, making them cower.

"And closer!" he turned to Flower, making him hide in the patch of flowers he was standing in. "There was nowhere for him to run. Then a dog as big as a tree, roared from the shadows!" he screamed the last part, making everyone jump.

"But Bambi was too fast and he…"

"…jumped high in the air!" one of his sisters joined in the story telling. Thumper gave her a glare before continuing.

"And came crashing…"

"…crashing down on the big dog's head!" another sister interjected. Thumper tapped his foot on the rock, waiting for order to return. After a moment they did settle.

"And…" Thumper stopped himself to make sure he would not be interrupted, to which silence followed, with a smile he proceeded "And the best part…"

"…and the best part was when Thumper helped Flower make his bestest bravest face, ever and scared all the dogs away!" Thumper almost looked annoyed but realized that he was okay with what they had said.

"Yup, that's the story," to which the smaller of the animals listening in cheered. Faline's ears perked up during the excitement and turned around.

"Hey, Bambi's here!" Faline interrupted the excitement, making the sisters turn around and dash to Bambi. Thumper crossed his arms and smirked.

"Y'know what, I guess they're okay for sisters, it's just too bad they're girls," Thumper said, earning a polite clearing of the throat, making Thumper flinch. He suddenly looked to where his sisters ran off to "H…Hey look, Bambi's here!" Thumper repeated, hoping to change the subject.

Bambi was walking towards the group when his head suddenly got caught on a branch of blossoms. He shook his head free, revealing two small antler stubs.

"Well, it seems as though your antlers are growing in quite nicely young prince," Friend Owl said with a smile.

"Really? I haven't noticed," Bambi added, making the others laugh. Bambi looked around and asked "Hey, where's Nathan, this is my last day here, I thought he'd be here,"

"He said he had to go to his mom and dad's wedding," one of Thumper's sisters explained.

"He said quite a few times," another added.

"More like complained," Friend Owl muttered under his breath. He spoke up again "Well, yes, Thumper was telling us quite a story; one of 'thousands of dogs'," He said leaning on the log he was perched on.

"Thousands?" Bambi shot Thumper a skeptic look.

"Heh, what can I say, I'm a natural born story teller," Thumper defended sheepishly.

"I bet it seemed like a thousand, Bambi," Faline said smiling, getting closer to Bambi, making hi back up into the porcupine.

The porcupine snickered at the opportunity for revenge and turned around, sending his quills erect and sticking Bambi. Bambi jumped from the quills and accidentally planted his lips to Faline's, making both back up. Bambi blushed while Faline looked as though she enjoyed it.

"Feh, twitterpated," Friend Owl muttered accidentally, right by Flower and Thumper's sister, who heard him.

"What's twitterpated?" Flower asked, making Friend Owl panic.

"It's, uh, eh…"he sighed "I'll uh, tell you when you're older," Friend Owl said looking up, thankful for avoiding the awkward conversation.

Bambi and Faline were still staring at each other when they heard someone's voice break their moment.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't the young prince," Ronno said hopping stones placed in a stream "Just know this princess, when we meet again, I'll-" he began not watching where he was going, falling into the water, making the others laugh. Grumbling, Ronno ran away.

"Oh I gotta get going, my dad's waiting for me, bye guys," Bambi said running off, the others waving goodbye.

Bambi ran in on the Great Prince and Meena talking. Bambi stopped just in front of the two.

"Are you ready to go Bambi?" Meena asked Bambi. Bambi walked to Meena but stopped before getting near her, a sad look on his face.

"Is something wrong?" the Great Prince asked, to which Bambi nodded.

"I just wanted to say goodbye to Nathan before I left," Bambi admitted. The Great Prince looked at Meena without speaking; Meena understood the message with a nod.

"Did Nathan say where it was taking place?" the Great Prince asked Bambi. Bambi thought for a moment.

"He said it was happening in a place near a 'gee-olf' course," Bambi tried to remember how Nathan said it. The Great Prince looked at him curiously.

"That one game where we saw the people hitting those white balls with the sticks," Bambi further explained.

"Ah, yes, well why don't we drop by and say goodbye?" the Great Prince suggested, Bambi nodded in excitement.

"Do you, Maricel Malnik, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband?"

"Yes, I do."

"Do you, Manny Williamson, take this woman to be your wife?"

"I do,"

"Then by the power invested in me, I know pronounce you two, man and wife," the preacher concluded the ceremony as Maricel and Manny locked lips, making Nathan fake gag and Garret stifle a laugh.

Nathan was watching from the back of the reception area as the rest of the family that had come was partaking in dancing; oddly enough, only Maricel's family showed up for the occasion. Nathan, in sheer curiosity, decided to turn around and look out at the golfers in the practice field. Then in the distance, he spotted a deer. Upon a closer look he realized he knew the deer "The Great Prince," he said managing to sneak out of the reception area without being noticed.

He passed by the golfers who were done in the practice field and went to the edge of the field, where the Great Prince was.

"Hey, long time no see," Nathan smiled, which the Great Prince returned.

"Yes, you've been busy with the wedding I assume?" he asked as Nathan tugged at the red tie around his neck.

"Yup and school, plus getting this thing on was a pain," he was referring to the tuxedo he was wearing "Do you need something?"

"Nathan!" he heard Bambi call out jumping at him.

"Bambi?" Nathan stuttered looking at Bambi "Geez you've grown," Nathan admitted feeling one of Bambi's budding antlers.

"So what's up?" Nathan asked. Bambi backed up.

"This is my last day here, and I wanted to say goodbye before I left," Nathan nodded.

"Will you ever come back?" Nathan asked.

"He will, when he is old enough to claim the Great Prince title," the Great Prince added. Bambi and Nathan looked at each other.

"I'm glad you came here before you left," Nathan admitted to Bambi. Meena walked in and said almost reluctantly.

"Bambi, its time," brushing up against Nathan one more time, Bambi walked to Meena and the two walked away.

"Bye dad, bye Nathan!" Bambi called out before disappearing from both the Great Prince and Nathan's sight.

"Great Prince?"

"Yes Nathan?"

"You didn't want to send Bambi away, did you?" the Great Prince looked at Nathan, he was surprised at the maturity of the question from an eight year old; The Great Prince sighed.

"Of course I didn't want to, but I'm a prince, I can't care for a child, that's a doe's job. Besides with Manny and his son, I can't afford to let something happen to Bambi, we are the last of the prince line," Nathan nodded, remembering the award for the Great Prince.

"Nathan!" Nathan heard Garret's voice, coming at him. He turned around and saw Garret running at him.

"I must go now…" the Great Prince said disappearing into the woods. Nathan ran to Garret.

"Garret, what's so important?"

"Its dad, the police are here for him," Garret blurted.

"What?" Nathan said in disbelief as he ran alongside Garret back to the reception area; lo and behold, police cars with the sirens on.

The two went inside and saw Maricel yelling at Manny who was in handcuffs, the argument ended, with her throwing her golden wedding band in his face. Nathan ran to his mom, who was now crying.

"Mom what's going on?" Nathan managed to ask. No answer came from his mother, who was still just crying.

"He's actually Ron Harrison," a police officer answered Nathan's question "He's a wanted man back in Lake Forest, Illinois. He's violated numerous hunting laws, hunting without a license, use of deer callers, exceeding the number of hunting dogs. All trying to get some deer called the Great Prince. He's migrated to this area in Memphis, Missouri, but we finally caught him." The police officer exposed Manny, or Ron for who he really was. The police officers were leaving as Nathan tugged on one of the legs of the officer.

"Wait, what about Garret?" Nathan pointed to the child holding back tears. The police officers talked to one another, uncertain what to do him.

"I'll take of him," Maricel said, regaining her composure slightly. Her eyeliner was running down her face. The officers shrugged and walked out with Ron. Garret walked over to Maricel and Nathan, he got close to Maricel.

"T...thank you," Garret managed.

Sometime had passed and everyone chose to forget the botched wedding, Garret officially became a Malnik alongside Maricel and Nathan. Nathan, feeling kind of sorry for Garret, talked to the Great Prince about how Garret never liked hunting and even, according to Garret, never even killed an animal.

"Nathan, where are you taking me?" Garret asked, hearing a concealed laugh from Nathan.

"Oh you'll see," Nathan turned to Garret as the Great Prince appeared from behind him.

The three went to the Temple of the Seasons and the Great Prince granted Garret the ability to talk to the animals. Something he discovered quickly after meeting Faline, Thumper and Flower. Nathan and Garret kept returning to the woods to play with their friends for the rest of spring, and the year to follow.

* * *

**I should probably talk about where I wanted to go with this.**

**It was in May 2012 that I had the idea to do a quick little story before continuing with the story of Bambi that would be my first crossover. It would've been a Fox and the Hound and Bambi (duh) crossover that took place during Fox and the Hound 2.**

**But considering I'm leaving this account now. I guess it will all be for naught. Now that the final story I had up is complete. I can now focus on other things, like maybe another fanfiction account...**

**So now I take my leave, this is not a see ya 'round, this is...**

**Goodbye**


End file.
